This invention relates to vehicles and the like in general and more particularly to a method and manner of attaching an outer sheet metal body to an inner glass reinforced plastic body.
Glass reinforced plastic [GRP] has been widely used in manufacturing various types of vehicles. The most widespread use has probably been in the manufacture of boats. However, GRP has also been used in other vehicles such as snowmobiles and in automobile bodies. In most cases where GRP has been used as the body of an automobile, snowmobile or the like the GRP has formed the external body surface. Thus, it is molded with this in mind and is given a suitable finish. Hereinafter, the explanation of various problems and description of the manner in which the present invention overcomes these problems will be in terms of automobiles. However, the teaching is equally applicable to other vehicles and structures where the same object is desired, that is, having an inner body of GRP and an outer body of a sheet material or the like.
With automobile bodies the molding and finishing of GRP to provide the finished outer body poses a number of problems. Only those shapes which can be molded are usable; the body after molding must have the shape desired. A finish must be placed on the body which is attractive. Damage to such finish is not always easy to repair and, in fact, in the case of an automobile where part of the GRP body might be damaged in a crash, the problem of a repair which restores the look of the body to what it originally was is somewhat difficult. Furthermore, difficulties arise in maintaining tolerances where doors are located and so forth in order to give a really attractive outside appearance.
There has recently been proposed a construction in which a GRP inner body which forms the actual structural automobile body is sheathed with an outer body of a sheet metal, preferably stainless steel. Stainless steel is particularly attractive because of its long life, freedom from corrosion and its pleasing appearance. The problem exists, however, in such a case, of securing the stainless steel panels such as fender panels hood or bonnet panels, trunk or boot panels, etc., to the body in such a manner that they are secure and properly aligned with each other. This is a particular problem in view of the fact that the nature of molded GRP is such that exact tolerances cannot always be maintained. Obviously, a misalignment between a fender panel and a door panel in such a case could be most unsightly.